At Sayama Psychological Institute patients between 20s and 50s who have withdrawn from society in various degrees come for counseling. Some have confined themselves to their own rooms whilst others go about their daily routine of work and school but struggle with a fear of people. They all seem to come from good families, have good academic backgrounds but just cannot build intimate relationships. Those who are single finds marriage impossible and those who have children struggle with loving them.

When we ask them to draw a picture of their mother, the sketches are often expressionless or angry. One actually is a picture of a woman’s head, as seen from behind. Fathers are often absent, leaving the care of children entirely to mothers.
Hikikomori (social withdrawal syndrome) is peculiar to Japan where millions of young adults seem to have wiped out their own existence by disappearing from society. Mr. Yuichi Hattori, a psychologist who started his own practice Sayama Psychological Institute since 1993 at his own house at Sayama city, observed that, “children of traditional middle and upper middle class families, whose parents are civil servants, teachers, farmers, corporate executives and business owners, are highly likely to develop hikikomori.” (‘Social Withdrawal in Japanese Youth: A Case Study of 35 Hikikomori Clients’ published in ‘Trauma and Dissociation in a Cross-cultural Perspective: Not just a North American phenomenon’.)
Yuichi Hattori’s assessment of hikikomori brings light to a baffling social problem plaguing especially young Japanese men. He says, “Hikikomori is a cultural bound syndrome.” Japanese culture values group conformity over individual freedom and approves of a dual system of ‘tatemae’ (outward self) and ‘honne’ (inner self).

Yuichi found out that patients at Sayama suffered a loss of secure parent-child attachment with histories of emotional neglect and abuse. In adapting to emotionally dysfunctional families, they seem to have repressed their original identities and feelings hiding behind a false front to please and conform to parents’ and societal expectations. So inevitably most of the patients developed a dual personality system of an outer and inner self. When their outer selves can no longer function properly they tend to withdraw from people.

Can these dry bones live again? This question in chapter 37 of the book of Ezekiel is such an apt description of the situation of hikikomori.
In ‘Trauma and Recovery’ by Judith Herman, she wrote that ‘in situations of terror, people cry for their mothers or for God. When this cry is not answered, the sense of basic trust is shattered. When trust is lost, they feel they belong more to the dead than the living.’

Through our counseling we help hikikomori learn to build trust relationships all over again not only with people but with God also.

Can these dry bones live again? Yes because, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says, “O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel.’ Ezekiel 37:12
On June 20 2010 (Father’s Day), we had the joy of witnessing 2 of our patients go through water baptism at the clinic upon their request. Both of them have come to the clinic some 7 years ago and actually live in the same neighborhood, Sayama, where the clinic is. When they no longer need to come for counseling, we rejoice that we can continue to enjoy their fellowship in God’s community.

For hikikomori to recover, they obviously need both a relationship with their Creator God as well as a loving community. We covet your prayers for God’s love to be poured out through us as we respond to the cries for help beneath the valley of dry bones.

"If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 4:11
Pray that God will continue to supply us the wisdom and power needed for the work and that the glory of God's name and not ours be advanced always.

Yeo Hwee Joo